Contact switch assembly for bagging machines



March ,1953 J.DUS1N ETAL CONTACT SWITCH ASSEMBLY FOR BAGGING MACHINES Filed July 7, 1950 2 Sl-IEETSSHEET l f1? rEn T0215 James fiwm & lazzzls' Jjl ZyflzZZa March 3, 1953 J. DUSlN ETAL 2,630,085

CONTACT SWITCHASSEMBLY FOR BAGGING MACHINES Filed July 7, 1950 2 s1-EETs--s1-1EET 2 lllllh IIN lllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllll" Patented Mar. 3, 1953 CONTACT SWITCH ASSEMBLY FOR BAGGING MACHINES James Dusin and Louis J. Ncgrilla, Chicago, Ill., assignors to Jewel Tea 00., Inc., Barrington, 111., a corporation of New York Application July 7, 1950, Serial N0..172,561

4 Claims.

v The present invention relates to .a conveyor assembly, and .more particularly to a conveyor assembly used in transporting bagged articles. from a station where the bag containers are filled to a closing station where the filled. bag is closed. as by means of stitching, sealing and the like.

In large scale bagging operations, as for example in the bagging of weighed quantitiesv of vegetables, fruits, sugar, flour, and the like, a conveyor system is employed to transport the material in its bag containers from the point at which the loader fills the bag with a measured quantity of material, and into a machine which is arranged to seal the container as by stitching the opposed edges of the container together.

The placing of the bagged articles upon the conveyor system is usually .quite irregular or spasmodic, so that the operation of the securing means cannot be timed mechanically for cyclic operation. It is undesirable to keep the stitching machine in continuous operation not only due to the power which is lost by having such machines run idle, but also because the machines are quite noisy.

With the foregoing in mind, an object, of the present invention is to provide a conveyor and sealing system for packaging preweighed articles.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a conveyor and sewing machine system in which the sewing machine is energized in relation to the passage of articles at varying time intervals along the conveyor system.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a switch assembly for intermittently energizing a drive motor associated with a sealing mechanism for closing paper or fabric bags, and the like.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a novel type of switch assembly whose adjuncts cooperate with a bagged article being transported along a conveyor system to intermittently operate a sewing machine. as the bagged article is fed thereto.

In the present invention, we have provided a novel type of conveyor system in which the. .arti-' cle is transported between guide means which close the open end of the bag by bringing the duction into a sewing machine.

tion of the sewing machine is controlled by the a rate of passage of the articles themselves, so that the machine is operated only as the articles are being fed thereto and deenergized after passage. of the articles through the machine.

The present invention will be, more completely described in connection with the attached sheets of drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan View of a conveyor and sewing machine assembly employing the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a view in elevation of the interior of the switch housing which controls the operation of the sewing machine;

Figure 3 is a side view, with parts in elevation, of the switch housing and switch assembly;

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line IV-IV of Figure 2, and illustrating the condition when the switch operating mechanism is in contact with the switch, thereby deenergizing the. sewing machine;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but illustrates the condition where the switch is actuated to energize the drive motor for the sewing machine;

Figure 6 is a plan view of a shoe assembly used in conjunction with the switch shown in Figures 2-5; and

Figure. 7 is a cross-sectional. view taken substantially along the line VIIVII of Fig. 6.

As shown on the drawings:

The conveyor assembly of the present invention consists in general of .a frame assembly l0 having a horizontal table II over which a conveyor belt or band I2 is arranged to pass. At spaced points along the. table II, there are provided a plurality of vertical channel members l3 which support a pair of spaced parallel horizontal guide rails I4. above the belt I2.

Also secured to the table H are a pair of brackets l5 and I6 for rotatably supporting a pair of pulleys I! and 1.8.

A plurality of vertical frame members 20, .21, 22 and 23 are also rigidly secured to the frame assembly iii, the vertical frame members 20 and 2| each carrying a pair of support arms 24. Similarly, the vertical frame members 22 and 23 carry support arms 25.

Each of the support arms 24 and 25 carries a pulley which acts as idler pulleys in a guide belt system. A guide belt 3! is trained about the pulleys at one side of the assembly, and a second guide belt 32 is trained about the opposite set of pulleys. The guide pulleys 31 and 32 may be driven by means of the drive pulleys I1 and I8 which are suitably driven by a motor (not shown) on each of the brackets, i5 and [6.

The drive pulleys l1 and 18 are driven in opposite. directions, so that the guide) belts 3| and 32 are driven at the speed of and in the direc tion of the conveyor belt l2 in the region where the guide belt contacts the bagged articles. As illustrated in Figure 1. the direction of the conveyor belt [2 is from left to right, so that the guide belts 3! and 32 also move to the right in the region where the guide belts 3| and 32 engage the articles to be packaged.

In Figure 1. there is illustrated a plurality of bags 35 each filled with a predetermined weight of potatoes 36. Each of the bags 35 is placed on the conveyor so that the folded opposed sides 3'! of each bag are turned inwardly along their old lines to facilitate folding the opposed front and rear surfaces 38 and 39 of the bag together. As the bags are conveyed by the conveyor belt l2, they are engaged by the moving guide belts 3| and 32 as illustrated in Figure 1 to bring the opposed flat front and rear surfaces 38 and 39 of the bags together, to facilitate the sewing i of these two surfaces together. In the drawings, there is illustrated .the condition where one of the bags 35 is partially engaged by the drive belts 3| and 32, while the bag at the immediate right of the aforementioned bag is being conveyed toward a stitching machine with its front and rear surfaces ,38 and 39 held in close proximity to each other.

After the tops of the bags are folded together, the conveyor feeds the closed bags into the stitching machine 40 containing a stitching mecha- Ii.

nism (not shown) which rapidly sews together the tops of the surfaces 38 and 39 of the bag. The stitching machine 40 is provided with a curved guide portion 4! which functions further to soueeze the front and rear bag surfaces tie 33 and 33 together prior to their engagement with the stitching mechanism.

The energization of the drive motor M included in the stitching machine 49 is controlled in ac-.

cordance with the present invention by means of a switch assembly designated generally at 42 and mounted on a sub-frame Ila of the framework H. The switch assembly 42 includes a housing 43 journalling a central cam shaft 44 therein.

The bottom end of the cam shaft 44 projects beneath the bottom of the housing and a flexible spring arm 45 is pinned to this end. This spring arm when deflected will develop operating torque for quick rotation of the shaft 44. The extreme end of the arm carries a shoe 45 in the path of the bags exiting from the guide belts 32 and 33 at a level below the belts and are engaged by the expanded portions of the bags just below their closed tops. The construction of the shoe is more clearly shown in Figs. 6 and '7. As will be seen from those figures, the shoe 46 consists of a relatively thin metal strip having a beveled edge portion 4? on one surface thereof, and a bent over portion 49 which is secured to the flexible arm 45 as by means of bolts 49. An arcuate suitable aperture in the top of the housing 43.

A support collar 19 secured to the cam shaft 44 rides on the bottom wall of the housing and prevents axial displacement of the cam shaft 44 within the housing 43.

The cam shaft 44 carries a pair of superimposed cams or dogs 53 and 54 in the housing 43. Also included within the housing 43 is a normally closed switch 55 having terminals 56 and 51 to a wall of the housing 43 and held rigidly in posi- Through this ar-' rangement, the position of the rubber cushion.

which are connected a pair of leads 58 and 59 in an energizing circuit 0. As shown in Fig. l the switch is inserted in series with one of the energizing leads to the drive motor M of the stitching machine 40 to control energization of the drive motor (as through a solenoid, not shown) as will be hereinafter explained.

The uppermost dog 53 operates as a switch actuating member through contact with an operating button 61] of the switch 55. The switch 55 may conveniently be a quick acting switch of the type commercially known as a microswitch. The upper portion of the dog 53 contacts the operating button 61). in the position illustrated in Figure 4, when the shoe 46 is out of contact with a bag 35. Under these conditions, the drive motor to the sewing machine 40 is deenergized, since the switch 55 is a normally closed switch and opens upon pressing the operating button 60.

In order to decrease the mass of the operating dog 53, one surface thereof may be beveled as at 62 (Figs. 4 and 5).

The lower dog 54 engages a stop member consisting of a rubber cushion 64 on a threaded,

shank 65, the shank 65 being threaded through tion by means of a nut 66.

64 may be adjusted as desired to afford more .or less bias upon the dog 54 for holding the dog 53 against the switch button 60.

Operation In the oir condition, that is, when no bag 35- is in contact with the shoe 46, the switch oper-:

ating dog 53 is urged against the operating button 60, thus op ningthe switch 55 and holding the drive motor to the stitching machine deenergized. The. assembly is kept in this condition. by the slight pressure exerted by the rubber.

cushion 64 against the dog 54.

The shoe 46 is disposed in a plane slightly above the plane of..the conveyor belt l2, and at such a level that it will conveniently contact the filled or expanded portion of a bag 35 as the bag is being conveyed through the assembly. As. the bag 35 is moved into a shoe-engaging posh.

tion, the expanded or filled portion of the bag first contacts the bevelededgeportion 41 of the shoe 46. Since the arm 45carrying the shoe 46 is a resilient spring member, the shoe can shift to accommodate bag irregularities and ride over the surface of the bag 35 so thatthe speed of the bag 35 along the conveyorbelt I2 is not impaired. As the bag 35 continues to travel along the conveyor, the shoe 45 will. be shifted to deflect the spring arm 45 to the position shown in dotted In this position, the bag has outline in Fig. 1. its end surfaces 38 and 39 guided to the sewing machine 49 by a guide rail 4!. The displacement of the shoe 46 into this position is sufficient to build up in the deflected arm 45 an operating torque which quickly rotates the cam shaft 44 in' a counterclockwise direction, pressing the dog 54 against the bumper 64, and causing the switch-operating dog 53 to release it pressure against the operating button 60 of the switch 55.

as the bag 35 travels be ond the length of the shoe as, the resiliency in the flexible arm 45,-- together with the bias of therubber cushion 64 against the dog 54 rotates the cam shaft 44 in a clockwise direction. This represents a return to the off condition illustrated by the solid lines of Figure 1. In this position, as illustrated in Figure 4, the operating button 59 is re-engaged by the switch operating dog 53 so that the energizing circuit to the drive motor of the sewing machine 40 is again opened. The circuit will be re-energized when the next bag 35 engages the shoe 46 as previously described. From this arrangement, it will be seen that the sewing machine 40 is operated only when a bag 35 has been conveyed to the machine.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that we have herein provided a useful and practical conveyor system for use in conveying and securing bagged articles. The sewing machine used to close the open end of the bag is operated only when needed, and the rate of operation is made dependent upon the rate at which the bags are being fed along the conveyor system, resulting in a substantial saving in the power required to operate the sewing machine. The switch assembly of the present invention is mechanically rugged, and not subject to the mechanical failures ordinarily appearing in the more complex devices used for similar purposes.

It will be understood that modifications and variations may be effected without departing from the scope of the novel concepts of the present invention.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a system for conveying open topped, filled containers to a stitching means, including a frame, a conveyor belt movable along said frame, guide belts carried by said frame for closing the open tops of the containers, and electrically operated stitching means receiving said containers from one end of said conveyor belt, a switch housing carried by the frame, a switch in said housing electrically connected to the energizing circuit of the stitching means, switch operating means including a pivotal arm having one end extending into said switch housing for operating said switch, a flexible spring contact associated with said arm and having an inflexible contact element arranged to contact the container on said conveyor belt prior to passage of the container into the stitching means, and an adjustable resilient stop means urging said switch operating means into switch-opening position to hold said switch open until said switch operating means is displaced into switch closing position against said resilient stop by contact of said contact element with a container.

2. In a system for conveying open topped, filled containers to a stitching means, including a frame, a conveyor belt movable along said frame, guide belts carried by said frame for closing the open tops of the containers, and electrically operated means for securing said tops after contact with the guide belts, a switch housing carried by said frame, a switch in said housing electrically connected to the energizing circuit for the stitching means, pivotal means associated with said housing and arranged to operate said switch, said pivotal means including a flexible spring arm and a relatively inflexible contact member carried by said spring arm and extending along said conveyor track between said guide belts and said stitching means to contact containers during passage of the same into the stitching means to thereby operate said stitching means, and resilient stop means in said housing urging said pivotal means against said switch into switch opening position.

3. In a system for conveying open topped, filled containers to a stitching means including a frame, a conveyor movable along said frame, guide means for bringing the opposed ends of an open-topped container together, and electrically operated stitching means for stitching together said opposed ends, a switch housing carried by said frame, a normally closed switch electrically connected to the energizing circuit of the stitching means, a switch operating member pivotally mounted within said housing, a flexible spring arm associated with said switch operating member, a relatively inflexible shoe carried by said flexible arm and arranged to extend into the path of containers on said conveyor immediately prior to said stitching means, whereby the switch will be operated to operate the stitching means upon contact of said shoe with a filled container on said conveyor, and a resilient stop member adjustably secured within said housing urging said member into switch opening position.

4. A switch actuator for a biased switch comprising a rockably mounted shaft, first and second superimposed dogs on the shaft, said first dog confronting the biased switch, an adjustable resilient bumper acting on the second dog to hold the first dog against the switch, and a deflectable spring arm secured on said shaft effective to build up shaft operating torque when deflected for quickly rocking the shaft to cause the second dog to load the bumper and to move the first dog away from the switch.

JAMES DUSIN. LOUIS J. NEGRILLA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,731,001 Gail Oct. 8, 1929 2,037,200 Rosmait Apr. 14, 1936 2, 93,686 Allen Aug. 18, 1942 2,444,170 Zabel et al. June 29, 1948 2,460,695 Hennessy Feb. 1, 1949 2,474,945 Johnson July 5, 1949 2,539,627 Kindseth et a1 Jan. 30, 1951 

